The steady pace of the store register beep, beep, beep can't compare to your heart rate. Hmm. Do I have enough money on my bank card to pay for this or will I be embarrassed when the card is declined? Whoops. How do I get off the bus, turn back and pay the light bill before it gets cut off?

These situations are all too familiar for me, and perhaps you as well. Try as we might, it's not always easy to keep track of our bank account or remember to pay all our bills. Thanks to online banking, our excuses are limited. Lots of local banks offer powerful online and tele-banking tools that reduce - even eliminate - our need to travel long distances and stand in longer lines at banks for service.

Convenient as online banking is, not all of us have computers or computer access. And, even if we do, sometimes we don't have access at critical times when we need it. Put that thinking in a box and pack it away. Today's Internet banking is mobile and accessible!

real-time access

Using your Internet enabled mobile phone, you can access your account, check your balances, transfer between accounts and pay bills at three major banks with more to follow.

On the beach, not a problem. Driving in a car, not a problem. At the airport not a problem. You have instant real-time access to your bank account using the same device, you now never leave the house without your mobile phone.

So, what do you need to access this revolutionary service that will transform your life as it did mine? Two simple things, a mobile phone with Internet access like the BlackBerry or iPhone and an account. This service only works if you already have an account not just an account with the bank, an online account which requires an additional step and more paperwork (but well worth it as you will see).

Once this is all in place, just browse over to the dedicated mobile site for your bank and your phone becomes your own personal teller. Mobile banking is not quite the same as online banking, though both take place on the Internet. Mobile banking-banking on your phone -is a scaled down version of the very powerful online option. Graphics and features are stripped down to their bear minimum to facilitate faster download and access times.

Thieves

Before you ask, yes, it is safe. Local banks use advanced encryption and non-cached pages to prevent criminals from accessing your account. Once you log out, that's it. Thieves can't go 'back' and access your bank data without re-entering the password. I am still waiting for mobile banking apps that sync with my bank account and track my spending patterns, help me budget and offer enhanced features, but for now, I am just thrilled, I can hold up my bank in my hand with my phone.

Tech glitch:On a BlackBerry, is there a difference between 'data clearing' and 'data wiping'? Ms Coons

Tech Fix: Data clearing/wiping is an irreversible action that removes everything (and I mean everything) from the phone and makes it like new (technically referred to as resorting factory defaults). It's important to do this before treating someone with your second-hand phone or disposing of it in ANY way. In extreme cases, data wiping a phone and restoring a previous backup helps if the phone becomes corrupt. The option is found in the Security Options menu, but use with caution.